Spain: Ibercisa Hosts Representatives from Panama Canal Authority

Ibercisa, based in Vigo, has received a visit from Mr. Ian Cohen and Mr. José Mata, representing the Authority of the Panama Canal who are in the City in order to inspect the machinery for the first tugboat of a series of 14 which the Panama Canal Authority is having built at the Armón shipyard. The visitors from the PCA were at the Ibercisa factory to oversee the construction of the two winches for this first vessel.

The winches have been custom built according to owners requirements and fulfilling the requisites of the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), The official classifier for ships and vessels.

The new Panama Canal allows navigation for vessels of up to 365 metres in length and it is estimated that the annual traffic crossing the canal will be much higher than the over a million tons which presently use it and with ships of up to 19 rows of containers as opposed to the present 13 with a heavier weight than the present 85,000 tons allowed. This requires that the tugboats being used, as well as their deck machinery, be powerful and reliable. It is hoped that the new Canal will be operative at the end of 2014 and this will be the first tugboat to operate from the new terminal.

The Vigo company has been expanding in the last few years both in personnel and machinery with a clear objective to compete in a highly competitive and globalized market. The company offers technical solutions and custom built designs always adapting to the customers requirements.

Technological Challenges

Ibercisa is presently dealing with important technological challenges as it is completing the design for the manufacture of two towing winches AHT type mod. MR-E/930/2/2500-89 for installation aboard the two tugboats under construction at the Armón Shpyard of 180 Tons B.P. The machine which is electrically driven, has two waterfall drums, each with a capacity for 2,500 m of 86,9 mm wire. The electric motors are of permanent magnet type, with elevated par at low revolutions.

The machine offers 350 Tons at 10 m/min on the first layer with the same pull, speed increases until 50 m/min when the offload is against the dynamic brake. The capacity of static brake is 600 tons on each drum, divided between the two differencial band brakes. For greater versatility each motor works with gearboxes joined together by a declutching transmission which allows the drums to work simultaneously reducing the pull by half.

Wire stowage is carried out by 4 rollers which move independently permitting them to move in time with the wire guide or in opposite directions in order to allow the shackles and joints to pass freely. Each roller is driven by chains geared on wildcats by two electrical motors and by epiciloidal gears.

The final weight of this winch is around 280 tons

[mappress]

Shipbuilding Tribune Staff, August 10, 2012; Image: ibercisa